Stately home weirdness

@ExtraMedium I had an “acquaintance” who was involved in the locally notorious Big Boy kidnapping in the Sacramento (CA) area sometime ago. It was never recovered and supposedly clandestinely moved around the country for number of years. I wonder if this is where it wound up?

@ExtraMedium I don’t know, the house write-up says “Meticulously cared for since 1936 by only two owners,” so whoever lives there has probably been there a long time. There was a Marc’s Big Boy ages ago in the general area, but you’d think someone connected to the chain would either have much more memorabilia or none. On the other hand, someone in that house is an accountant, and accountants can have unexpected connections through their work.

@ExtraMedium If it were me, it’d be a different Big Boy!

@PooltoyWolf that big boy was here the other day. I got busy at work and forgot to go see it.

@djslack I hope to see it one day!

@djslack @PooltoyWolf I just found out that this is going to be in Denver tomorrow! Probably won’t get there though, but I wish I’d known sooner. It just seemed like quite the coincidence right after seeing it here the other day.

@djslack @Kyeh Tell UP to send him down here!!

@ExtraMedium @PooltoyWolf oh he just ran through STL last week. There are some amazing pics on line

@ExtraMedium @PooltoyWolf I was wondering if this was the one being restored in Cheyenne a few years ago. Sounds like it is. Brought back to service in 2019 for the 150th anniversary of the transcontinental railroad. Glad to hear it’s “touring” now.
https://www.up.com/heritage/steam/4014/

@ExtraMedium @pmarin Yep, that’s the one. I just hope I get to see 4014 someday.

@stolicat And why is there an ET wearing a sleeveless hoodie and Mardi Gras beads in a weird niche by the back staircase? Is the niche a filled-in dumbwaiter?

@stolicat After careful consideration of the basement, all I can tell you is that I assume the Calumet Baking Powder jar is a Shining reference.

@mossygreen @stolicat I’m wondering if the owner worked in advertising or product design; the Big Boy might be from that - or they got their career started working at one?
I couldn’t spot the ET in Mardi Gras beads …

Maybe the well-stocked downstairs kitchen is the servants’ quarters? Or an older relative lived down there? Quite a place, anyway!

@Kyeh @stolicat OK, when you’re in the foyer, go to the doorway to the left of the gigantic bouquet, which leads to the servants’ staircase and the kitchen. The niche is before the staircase on the right, and you have to take a little step to not immediately end up in the kitchen. The first time I saw it I swore because it was so unexpected.
I am completely in love with this house, it’s so damn weird.

@mossygreen @stolicat Ha! Spotted it, but it wasn’t obvious. Yes, I would love to know more about the people who lived here.
The niche might have been for a telephone.

@stolicat Starter preppers, with the world’s least secure shelter door? Dutch, bold choice!

@mossygreen that little Niche would have been where THE telephone in the house went back in the day.
as to why the ET??

1. Why Not?
2. Looks like something a kid might have done years ago, and mom & dad just kept it there as a reminder of “little” Suzie…

@earlyre @mossygreen Telephone niche. ET phone home?

@earlyre @mossygreen @rockblossom

ET phone home

That sounds right!

@mossygreen @rockblossom ah ha!

@Kyeh Your guess about product design was correct, the woman whose office has the Mighty Leaf tea display is the founder & CEO of Planet Canit, which designs metal packaging, containers, canisters, etc, including for the cannibis industry. Might explain the eclectic decor!

@mossygreen Another nod to The Shining: the formal-dress family photo on the dining room wall… Cute AND creepy!

@ircon96 Oh, neat! I saw all the cool tins in the cabinets there. That would be a marvelous job to have. And I’m sure it does explain why the house is so full of flamboyant decor. I think it’s gorgeous.

@Kyeh I agree, it’s a great house, and all the whimsical touches make it feel much more homey than a lot of old mansions. I also checked out the company’s website where u can see close-up examples of their tin designs. They do great work, I really like their whole aesthetic.

@ircon96 @Kyeh Oh god, that’s really cool! But now I feel like I officially know way too much about these people. Knowing the names of their two (probable) bull terriers was almost, but not quite, too much. This tipped it over.

@Kyeh @mossygreen Lol, I hear u, they probably should have cleared out a little more of their stuff. But, on the other hand, they really made sure viewers checked out every square inch of that house! Anyway, I blame @replicacobra

@ircon96 @Kyeh @mossygreen
Blame for decor choice
Or for your creepy peepings
Please be specific

@Kyeh @mossygreen @replicacobra
Blame for everything.
After all, you are the goat,
there is no limit.

@ircon96 @Kyeh @mossygreen @replicacobra
The house with decor
Sits waiting for our judgement
Perhaps it trolls us?

@ircon96 @mossygreen @pmarin @replicacobra It almost seems like a sitcom or comedy-drama waiting to happen.

@mossygreen there’s a couple of those, where you go through a doorway and then turn around and it’s now closed. This place gets creepier the more you explore.

@mossygreen @stolicat I’m going to make an accusation:
It was done in the basement, by Col. Mustard, with a lead pipe.

========
As to the open/closed doors, I think that is just comparable to looking at Google street view, where the time lapses show vehicles there/not there/further away in different views. I.e., not a static situation, especially if there was an open house during taping.

@mossygreen @stolicat
Not a house listing
A choose-your-own mystery
The house is alive!

@rockblossom where is the garage?

@tinamarie1974 Look at the floor plan. On the 3D tour, go out the front door, right along the sidewalk to the driveway, right through the gate, garage doors and back entry are on the right. Or you can just go out the back entry door from the inside - if you can find it. (Blue door past kitchen, then left through wood door.)

… Or you can just move the pointer wherever you want - like just outside the garage doors. This works on a PC but not sure how it would work on a phone.

@rockblossom Ah, but you cannot go into the garage - at least I couldn’t figure out how, through the doors or by clicking directly… Who knows what’s hiding in there? Probably the rest of the stuff they couldn’t cram into the basement rooms before the house tour.

@rockblossom It’s a trap!

@rockblossom I was thinking they just park on the driveway and use the back area as weird wild bird shrine that they and their parrot can observe?

@mossygreen Oh, you mean the stuffed fake parrot in the super clean cage that never looks around at the person with the camera? I’m going to go with: the birdseed in the feeders is poisoned and the garage is filled with taxidermy stuff. Sometimes they have to retrieve them from the roof, which is why there’s a stack of ladders by the back fence. There’s also a canoe back there, but I have no clue how that fits in.

@rockblossom I can assure you that if you stand directly next to the parrot cage, with the piano in front and to your left, the parrot is looking at you. But if you stop by the fireplace, it is not. Doesn’t mean the parrot is alive, but it does mean they’re going to a lot of trouble for this.

@mossygreen @rockblossom weird they have arrows that let you travel right up to the canoes and ladders. I also just noticed the odd assortment of bird feeders in the driveway (held in place by concrete blocks on the bases) outside the garage doors, arranged in such a way that one could not drive a car through there to get to or from the garage.

@rockblossom @stolicat My favorite thing might be that you can go up the spiral staircase to the second floor balcony, just in case your dealbreaker is the view from mid-way up and you need to know this ahead of time. But I do also appreciate the attention to detail for the ladder afficionados among us.

@mossygreen @rockblossom @stolicat
Pics of foundations
Former aficionados
Ladders for latter

@stolicat That’s a really interesting point. I find it a lot more appealing than staged houses stripped of any individuality. If I had 1.5 million dollars and wanted to put it towards this house, I’d honestly want them to throw in some of the stuff. That pool table full of dvds is structural and part of the sale, right?

@mossygreen @stolicat Is that how much they’re asking for this house?

@Kyeh https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/843-Kimball-Rd_Highland-Park_IL_60035_M76102-59804

@Kyeh @mossygreen @stolicat @replicobra
by design or fluke
realtor got many clicks
purpose was achieved

@allergycheryl
I sit in my chair
Goes with eclectic decor
Why do you question?

@pmarin “One of these things are not like the others” Nooooo “None of these things are like the others” Vomiting up a bit of every decor known to man and then giving it a stir does not eclectic make

@mbersiam this whole setup was a lot of fun and creative work for someone - nothing wrong with a navigation arrow that leads you here:

@mbersiam @stolicat
Want more than if bare
I’d have a beer with owners
And hire the realtor